Tag: Circumstances vs Joy - Philippians 1-2

Philippians 2:19 (ESV Strong's)

I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you.

Tag:  Circumstances and Joy

The book of Philippians is an entire book on the subject of “joy.”     Paul is quite specific as to what gives him joy.   The first time he uses the word in the book is here:

Philippians 1:3-4 (ESV Strong's)

I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy,

His prayer was with joy.    The reason for the joy was that he as a relationship with Christ and that produces joy in his spirit.   In fact, the Holy Spirit is the source of all real joy ... it is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:20-22).    In the above passage we read that Paul is going to be “cheered” over sending Timothy to the Philippians believers.    This is the only place in the New Testament that this Greek word is used (eupsycheō).   It is a word made up of two Greek words:  “eu” and “(psychē).    The prefix means “good” or “well.”  They “psyche” is familiar to us.   We use it to speak of the fields of Psychology and Psychiatry.    It is the word for “spirit.”   So, Paul is saying that he will have a “good and well spirit” if he can send them support with Timothy’s visit.   Paul is not moved to a calm spirit based upon the circumstances, but rather recognizes that those circumstances would demonstrate the answer to his prayer and his mission he hoped for.   Paul’s joy is not determined by outside circumstances.  But, Paul does have a good and calm spirit when He sees God work further in the lives of others.   God was Gospel mission centric.  That was what calmed his spirit.   He had nothing in his mind other than the spread of the Gospel.  Timothy going to Philippi was one more answer to prayer and one more step in his mission.  That brought him further joy.   Outside circumstances should provide joy, but only when they reflect on the power of the Gospel.  All other circumstances are simply noise in our ears to get our attention away from the power of the Gospel.   

Tag: We Have the Scriptures!! Luke 15-16

Luke 16:27-31 (ESV Strong's)

And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house— for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’”

Tag: We Have the Scriptures!

The above passage is taken from the story of the rich man and the beggar, Lazarus.   Both of these men died but the rich man went to a place of torment and Lazarus went to a place of paradise.  The rich man is now the beggar ... he is begging God to send someone to warn his family about this place of torment and the place of paradise.  Of course, being the privileged man that he is, he “instructs” God to send the beggar, Lazarus, to do his bidding.   Notice that the heart of the rich man still has no compassion for Lazarus; only for his own family.    God’s response is that the rich man’s family has the Scriptures to point them to the place that Lazarus is in.   The truth is, for today, all the Scriptures point to the same place.   People fail to believe God’s Word and suffer the consequences.   The world likes to create its own philosophy and direction for life, but when the end comes, they will all have the same torment.   The Scriptures speak for themselves.   If they fail to believe in the Scriptures, even Christ’s resurrection from the dead will have no meaning for them.  For, it is in the Scriptures that we understand the reason for his death, burial and resurrection.   

Tag: Reparations Are NOT God’s Ways! Ezekiel 13-18

Ezekiel 18:19-20 (ESV Strong's)

“Yet you say, ‘Why should not the son suffer for the iniquity of the father?’ When the son has done what is just and right, and has been careful to observe all my statutes, he shall surely live. The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.

Tag:  Reparations Are NOT God’s Ways!

We have a lot of talk in our country about reparations for the past failures of those who have gone before us.   We have had, truly, evil practices by our forefathers.   We will, no doubt, in generations to come, have society look back at us and ask, “why did they do that?”  Every generation tends to judge the morality and ethics of the generation(s) before them through their current moral and ethical lens.   However, there is no doubt, that in any generation the treatment of others ought to be righteously rebuts.   However, in the above passage we read God’s thoughts on second and their generational reparations.   God is saying that the sins of the father SHOULD NOT be visited upon the children.   The context of the above passage is found in Ezekiel, who is prophesying to the nation of Israel about their doom and destruction.  They, themselves, had disobeyed God and would suffer the consequences for that disobedience.   God was not punishing the children for the sins of their fathers.   God was punishing the children because they, like their fathers, failed to walk in obedience to Him.   God does not punish the righteous because their fathers were unrighteous.   God punishes the unrighteous.   The entire 18 chapter of Ezekiel is written to make sure the nation of Israel knows that the punishment they are experiencing (and about to experience even more) was NOT based upon the theory of “reparations.”   They were being judged for their current behaviors that they themselves were committing.   That is the entire point of today’s talk of reparations.  We have plenty of sin we are currently doing that needs to be fixed, much less paying for the sins of our fathers.   

Tag: How to Avoid Folly - Proverbs 7

Proverbs 7:1-5 (ESV Strong's)

My son, keep my words

and treasure up my commandments with you;

keep my commandments and live;

keep my teaching as the apple of your eye;

bind them on your fingers;

write them on the tablet of your heart.

Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”

and call insight your intimate friend,

to keep you from the forbidden woman,

from the adulteress with her smooth words.

Tag: Protected from Folly!!!

In the above text, the “forbidden woman” is a word picture for “folly.”  Then entire book of Proverbs is written to warn us how to avoid folly and choose wisdom, instead.  

Proverbs 1:1-4 (ESV Strong's)

The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel:

To know wisdom and instruction,

to understand words of insight,

to receive instruction in wise dealing,

in righteousness, justice, and equity;

to give prudence to the simple,

knowledge and discretion to the youth—

Solomon is trying to tell us, in chapter seven, how to avoid the temptation of folly.  Folly can come dressed in any gender and many different gestures.   In chapter seven she is dressed as a harlot and seduces a young man who lacks any sense. He repeatedly goes after her.   What Solomon tells us in the beginning of chapter seven is that we should seek wisdom the same way this young boy is seeking folly.  We are to embrace her (wisdom) and become close to her ... as though she were your sister (assuming you have a good relationship with a sister).   The word picture really means, we are to pursue wisdom and make her our best friend.   When we reject wisdom we will continue to make the same mistakes as the young boy in the rest of chapter seven does: He pursues the hot woman (folly) right into her trap (wicked behavior) and directly to his end (his death).   The way we avoid that is to read God’s Word (wisdom) and believe God’s Word (wisdom) and to what God’s Word says (wisdom), whether we feel like it or not.   

Tag: Do We Serve God In Vain? Psalms 72-77

Psalms 73:13-15 (ESV Strong's)

All in vain have I kept my heart clean

and washed my hands in innocence.

For all the day long I have been stricken

and rebuked every morning.

If I had said, “I will speak thus,”

I would have betrayed the generation of your children.

Tag:  Do We Serve God In Vain?  

In the above passage, Asaph, the writer of this psalm, is wondering if he is serving God in vain.   The song starts out with him having envy for what he believes is the “prosperity of the wicked.”  He sees the wicked flourish and he, like many of us, wonders if he is doing all this worship and service in vain.  He is not alone in this thought.  Here are the words of one of the strongest of the minor prophets:

Malachi 3:13-16 (ESV Strong's) 

“Your words have been hard against me, says the Lord. But you say, ‘How have we spoken against you?’ You have said, ‘It is vain to serve God. What is the profit of our keeping his charge or of walking as in mourning before the Lord of hosts? And now we call the arrogant blessed. Evildoers not only prosper but they put God to the test and they escape.’”

Malachi, Asaph, and many before and after them, spent some of their time questioning the value of serving God. That only happens, however, when we cease to see God and start looking on the temporal around us.  When we view God we see His glory and everything else dims, as it should.   Even Asaph soon came to his senses:

Psalms 73:17 (ESV Strong's)

until I went into the sanctuary of God;

then I discerned their end.

Once we get a real perspective of God, the end of the wicked comes to mind.   We are refreshed in our spirit when we realize it is not this world that matters, but the next.  We are members of the Kingdom of God and that has a future aspect that we all need to rejoice over and fully focus upon.   

Tag: Living in a Cave - 1 Kings 18-22

1 Kings 19:9-10 (ESV Strong's)

There he came to a cave and lodged in it. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.”

Tag:  Living in a Cave!!

Elijah, in the previous chapters, has just secured a great victory for God.  He has stood up to over 800 false prophets and proven that the God of Israel is the true God.  He ought to be living high on the lamb.   However, he has, instead, taken off on a run and fallen into a state of deep depression.   In his wandering he has found a cave.   The cave seems random to the reader, but in God’s sovereign will, this is exactly where Elijah needs to be.  This is where he is about to see God’s glory.    This is where he will hear his final instructions for the remainder of his ministry.   God will minister to him in this cave.   After going 40 days and nights, God brings him to this cave.    Whereas chapter 18 sees Elijah on top of the mountain, serving God and showing God’s glory and power to others, it will be in this cave that he sees God’s glory and power himself.   Sometimes those in the ministry can be the most depressed.   They see God working in the lives of others, often, through them, but don’t alway see the power of God in themselves.   This is a great picture to show us that when God takes to a mountain top, or a cave, we can see God’s power and glory.   Whether in power or in weakness, God wants to demonstrate His glory in our lives.   We serve an awesome God who can show us His power on top of a mountain or hiding in the midst of the mountain.   

Tag: No More “Do” for the Glory of the Lord! Leviticus 7-9

Leviticus 9:6 (ESV Strong's)

And Moses said, “This is the thing that the Lord commanded you to do, that the glory of the Lord may appear to you.”

Tag:  No More “Do” for the Glory of the Lord!

In the above passage and this part of Leviticus, we read about what Aaron and his sons, the priest, had to “do” for the glory of God to appear to them.  They performed ritual sacrifices prescribed by God and in the way God wanted. This was the result:

Leviticus 9:23-24 (ESV Strong's)

And Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting, and when they came out they blessed the people, and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the pieces of fat on the altar, and when all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces.

That was the ritual and the way it was in the Old Testament.   But, then came Christ.   Here is what we now read in the New Testament:

Hebrews 10:11-12 (ESV Strong's)

And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God,

2 Corinthians 3:16-18 (ESV Strong's)

But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

Today, the glory of the Lord is revealed in Christ.  WE are being changed from one degree of glory to the next by the power of the Spirit in our lives.   The OT sacrifice system was a shadow of what was to come. 

Hebrews 10:1 (ESV Strong's)

Christ's Sacrifice Once for All

For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near.

Today we are brought “near” to the Glory of the Lord through the sacrifice and finished work of Christ.   We can rejoice in that truth!!!

Tag: Put On Christ - Ephesians 4-6

Ephesians 4:20-24 (ESV Strong's)

But that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

Tag:  Put On Christ

In the above text we are told to put on the “new self.”  If we are not careful we might think that, after conversion, that is something WE do, OURSELVES. But, the text actually says to “put on the new self, CREATED after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”    What Paul is telling us is that at our conversion (repentance, faith, belief), Christ began to “recreate” us in His likeness.    We are to, through Christ’s work and power, “put off” the former way we lived and thought and “in Christ” we are to be “renewed in the spirit” of our minds.   That means we begin to think Biblically.  Paul is about to tell us (in chapter six) to put the armor of God. One piece of armor is the “helmet of salvation.”  That piece of armor is to indicate our mind is part of the salvation of experience, not simply our soul.  Christ is in the process of “renewing” our mind.  He wants to change our thoughts to be Christ-centered.  This is what it means to “put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”   The effort we put into the “putting on” experience is our faithful belief and obedience to God’s Word.   It is the Spirit of God that is transforming us.   We are the vessels of His work.  We must continue to believe and obey His word and the Spirit will continue to shape us into the image of Christ.  That is how we put on Christ.   

Tag: Don’t let the Word Distract - Luke 13-14

Luke 14:15-24 (ESV Strong's)

When one of those who reclined at table with him heard these things, he said to him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” But he said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet and invited many. And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled. For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.’”

Tag:  Don’t Let the World Distract

In the above parable of Jesus we are reading about the priorities of life.   Jesus is telling us a story about how the Kingdom of Heaven is being presented to mankind.  But, man has been distracted.  In the above parable you have a story about a “man” (representing God in Jesus’ teaching) who gave a banquet (representing the Kingdom of God).  He invited people to join his banquet, but those invited had more important things to do (what could be more important that attending the banquet representing the Kingdom of God?).   Instead of waiting for those invitees to arrive, the man goes out into the streets and invites anyone to attend (representing believers).   The wealthy (those who bought lands) and the industry minded (those who must train their five oxen) and those love others more (the one who married someone), will not be allowed to enter the banquet (the Kingdom of God).  The banquet (Kingdom of God) is for he blind, the lame, the poor, the outcast ... it is for those who have nothing in this world.  We must not allow the cares of this world to distract us from the most important invite of all:  Being members, by faith in Christ, in the Kingdom of God.  That is where our citizenship is from.   

Tag: God’s Promises Are True - Ezekiel 7-12

Ezekiel 12:28 (ESV Strong's)

Therefore say to them, Thus says the Lord God: None of my words will be delayed any longer, but the word that I speak will be performed, declares the Lord God.”

Tag: God’s Promises Are True 

In Ezekiel 7-12 we are given the visions and prophecy of Ezekiel in regard to God’s wrath poured out on the people of Israel and Jerusalem.   The visions are rough.  It is hard to read without having some mercy and some pity on the nation.  They deserve it for the abomination of idolatry (that is fully explained within the chapters).  But, it is hard to imagine.   Even Ezekiel had some difficult reaction.  When he prophesied agains 25 specific false teachers and one of them dies, here was Ezekiel’s reaction:

Ezekiel 11:13 (ESV Strong's)

And it came to pass, while I was prophesying, that Pelatiah the son of Benaiah died. Then I fell down on my face and cried out with a loud voice and said, “Ah, Lord God! Will you make a full end of the remnant of Israel?”

Ezekiel had mercy that God had already displayed on the nation.  But, God’s mercy is balanced by God’s justice.  At the end of this section of prophesy we read the above text that God is done with the prophesy and what He has said, will come true.   God gives us His word and ever stoke of the pen will come through and be true.   We can rejoice in God’s veracity and fidelity.   God never breaks His word, whether the promise is good or bad.   God keeps His promises.  

Tag: Industrious Ant vs Lazy Slug - Proverbs 5-6

Proverbs 6:6-11 (ESV Strong's)

Go to the ant, O sluggard;

consider her ways, and be wise.

Without having any chief,

officer, or ruler,

she prepares her bread in summer

and gathers her food in harvest.

How long will you lie there, O sluggard?

When will you arise from your sleep?

A little sleep, a little slumber,

a little folding of the hands to rest,

and poverty will come upon you like a robber,

and want like an armed man.

Tag:  Industrious Ant vs Lazy Slug

Solomon is giving us wisdom to live by in each proverb he writes.   We can dwell on them and garner the mind of Christ in each one.   In regard to our work ethic, Solomon has much to say and the above proverbs stand out.   Solomon is comparing one of God’s creature with the other.   Mankind has been given all the benefits of life over every other creature God has made.   Man certainly has advantage over the ant.   Yet, Solomon is pointing out that the ant has no one to guide them, no one to push them, no one to rule over them.   Yet, the ant dutifully finds food and packs away for the winder months.     The ant works with other ants to care for the needs of the community.   Yet, the sluggard, the slothful, the lazy man, does not.  The lazy takes a nap in the day of harvest.   The lazy person doesn’t work with his/her hands, they fold them across their lap and doesn’t bother to move them.  “One more quick nap,” is theme of the sluggard.  So, in the day they need something to eat, there is nothing there.  They think someone robbed them.  They think that someone held them up and took their “meals.”    But, in reality they lost the opportunity to provide for them and their family.   Being slothful is not the way of wisdom.  It is not the way of God.   God did not give us superiority over the other creatures to be lazy.   We are to using the power of God in our lives for His glory and honor.  A sluggard does not glorify God.  

Tag: God Does NOT Need and Apologists - Psalms 72-74

Psalms 74:22-23 (ESV Strong's)

Arise, O God, defend your cause;

remember how the foolish scoff at you all the day!

Do not forget the clamor of your foes,

the uproar of those who rise against you, which goes up continually!

Tag:  God Needs NO Apologists

Asaph is the writer of this Psalm.   He is a musician and a song writer.   He often, however, struggles with is faith (see Psalm 73).  He wonders when God is going to break through and declare His power in Asaph’s life.   In Psalm 74 he is asking God to show His power by defending the weak and the downtrodden.   But, he notices that those who don’t believe God reject Him and give up on Him.   In the above verses we see that Asaph ask God to “arise” and “defend your cause.”   Asaph is not God’s apologists.  God can defend Himself.   God did so in the life of Job.  Job had lost everything and Job’s friends came to tell Job it was his fault he lost everyone and everything.   But, in the end of the book God breaks through and declares His power.  He doesn’t immediately change Job’s circumstances but God does change Job’s belief and attitude.  Note, after finally seeing and believing in the power of God, what Job says:

Job 40:3-4 (ESV Strong's)

Job Promises Silence

Then Job answered the Lord and said:

“Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you?

I lay my hand on my mouth.

God reveals Himself even more to Job and what does Job say? 

Job 42:1-6 (ESV Strong's)

Then Job answered the Lord and said:

“I know that you can do all things,

and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.

‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’

Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,

things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.

‘Hear, and I will speak;

I will question you, and you make it known to me.’

I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,

but now my eye sees you;

therefore I despise myself,

God does not need an apologists.   God can defend Himself and will.  He is the God of the universe.   

and repent in dust and ashes.”

Tag: God’s Promises Are True - No Matter the Time Frame!! - 1 Kings 14-17

1 Kings 16:34 (ESV Strong's)

In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation at the cost of Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the Lord, which he spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.

Tag:  God’s Promises Are True - No Matter the Time Frame!!

In the above passage we see the cost to Hiel of Bethel for his rebuilding Jericho.   It cost him his firstborn son and his youngest son.  We have no idea what that means.  We don’t know if they sacrificed them, sold them, or they died in the construction of the city.  It is probably the later, but, the statement is a fact that by rebuilding the city, Hiel lost two sons.   Why?   It should remembered that Joshua destroyed Jericho years before.   After that destruction, Joshua warned all mankind to NOT rebuild Jericho.  Here is exactly what Joshua said:

Joshua 6:26 (ESV Strong's)

Joshua laid an oath on them at that time, saying, “Cursed before the Lord be the man who rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho.

“At the cost of his firstborn shall he

lay its foundation,

and at the cost of his youngest son

shall he set up its gates.”

Wow!!   There are many promises and prophecies of God that come true.  But, the specifics of this one and the acts of this one are amazing.  We should never doubt God’s Word.    God makes promises; both good and bad.   They all come true.   It should be noted that Hiel is from the town of Bethel.   At one time Bethel was a place of blessing and God’s presence.    Abraham was one of the first to settle there:

Genesis 12:8 (ESV Strong's)

From there he moved to the hill country on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. And there he built an altar to the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord.

The name “Bethel” means “house of God.”   We can see how far Israel has fallen that a man from Bethel (Hiel) attempts to rebuild Jericho, a town that is to be cursed if anyone attempts to rebuild it.  Hiel had such little regard for God’s Word and God’s prophecy that he attempted to rebuild the city.   God Word remains true.  Whether a prophecy for blessing or for curse.  We must never doubt God’s Word.  Never!   It will always come true - blessings and curses.  

Tag: Guilt Always Comes to Light - Leviticus 4-6

Leviticus 4:13 (ESV Strong's)

“If the whole congregation of Israel sins unintentionally and the thing is hidden from the eyes of the assembly, and they do any one of the things that by the Lord's commandments ought not to be done, and they realize their guilt,

Tag:  Guilt Always Comes to Light

The last phrase of the above verse is stated, as well in Leviticus 4:22 and Leviticus 4:27.   These are the first occurrences of the word “guilt” in the book of Leviticus.  It is first used in the Old Testament in the book of Genesis.  Abraham has moved his family into the land of King Abimelech and told his wife, Sari, to say she was Abraham’s sister.   Here is the kings thought about that:

Genesis 26:10 (ESV Strong's)

Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”

Abimelech was worried about his guilt, when it was Abraham who should have felt guilty for lying about his approach with Sari.   

In these Leviticus passages we see the results of sin producing “guilt” in the life of the offender.  The sin in our lives will always produce guilt.   Thankfully, the God have heaven has provided a solution with guilt:

Isaiah 6:7 (ESV Strong's)

And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”

Isaiah sees God in Isaiah 6 and he realizes his sin is exposed before God and that produces guilt.  But, through Jesus’ we have our guilt “taken away.”   We can praise God that He heals our brokenness and free us from guilt.  

Tag: The Mystery is Gentiles Partake in the Promises - Ephesians 1-3

Ephesians 3:1-6 (ESV Strong's)

For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles— assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace that was given to me for you, how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly. When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

Tag: The Mystery is Gentiles Partake in the Promises

Paul writes much about the “mystery of the Gospel.”  Of the 27 times the word is used in the New Testament, 20 of them are used by Paul.   He talks repeatedly about the “mystery” of Christ, found in the Gospel.   

In Colossians, he states the following:

Colossians 4:3 (ESV Strong's)

At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—

And, 

Colossians 1:27 (ESV Strong's)

To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

The “mystery” is that the “riches of God’s glory is manifested in Christ to the Gentiles” that we might experience be “fellow heirs” of the inheritance of the saints.   Wow!!   We are “fellow heirs” in the inheritance of the saints!!   Unless we fully understand what that means we will miss the power of Paul’s statement.  In the beginning of Ephesians Paul explained the inheritance of the saints in chapter one.   It is a glorious, run-on sentence of what God has provided for us in Christ.  That is our inheritance.  The “mystery” has been made known.  Paul’s entire mission is to make known that mystery.  It is rejoicing to hear the mystery and it rejoicing to proclaim it others.  That is what motivated Paul.    He wanted to declare the mystery of what it means to be in Christ.  

Tag: Moral Improvements Fail without Spiritual Regeneration

Luke 11:24-26 (ESV Strong's)

“When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and finding none it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds the house swept and put in order. Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last state of that person is worse than the first.”

Tag: Moral Improvements Fail without Spiritual Regeneration

Our society (church emphasis and focus included) seems to think that improving the moral choices of the person is the solution to the evil in our world.  However, Jesus tells us in the above passage that simply improving your moral framework does not take care of the major problem ... your position with God and being regenerated.  Jesus came to establish a relationship with us as sons and daughters of God, not simply improving our moral framework.   We have many churches who are all consumed with social justice and social equality, but lack any message of regeneration via justification by faith.   Jesus is concerned about our sanctification.  Simply read the Sermon on the Mount and we can see that He is very much concerned about our living behavior.   But, behavior follows repentance from sin.  Simply cleaning up the life does not change character.  In fact, as Jesus taught, above, cleaning up the moral life puts in further struggles.   Jesus teaches that demon influence and possession is a real thing.   Moral improvement does not equate to Spiritual Regeneration.   Notice what Peters says that is very similar to Jesus’ Words:

2 Peter 2:20-22 (ESV Strong's)

For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”

I would be better to NOT have become moral than to simply try to improve morality in place of repentance.   

Tag: Seeing God should Change Your Life - Ezekiel 1-6

Ezekiel 3:22-24 (ESV Strong's)

And the hand of the Lord was upon me there. And he said to me, “Arise, go out into the valley, and there I will speak with you.” So I arose and went out into the valley, and behold, the glory of the Lord stood there, like the glory that I had seen by the Chebar canal, and I fell on my face. But the Spirit entered into me and set me on my feet, and he spoke with me and said to me, “Go, shut yourself within your house.

Tag:  To See God is to Experience Change

Ezekiel, like many of the prophets and Old Testament characters, had a special privilege of seeing some type of manifestation of God.   In EVERY case this happened there was a profound impact on the prophet or Biblical character.   No one who saw a shadow of God went away the same.  Notice how this book of Ezekiel opens as it leads to the above verses:

Ezekiel 1:1-3 (ESV Strong's)

Ezekiel in Babylon

In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the exiles by the Chebar canal, the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. On the fifth day of the month (it was the fifth year of the exile of King Jehoiachin), the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the Chebar canal, and the hand of the Lord was upon him there.

Ezekiel 1:28 (ESV Strong's)

Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around.

Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking.

When Jesus was on the earth the disciples had a physical human being shape of God the Son, incarnate.   They did not recognize Him as such until He ascended back to heaven after his resurrection.   But, in His teaching, Jesus shared what it would look like if we understood the concept of “seeing God:”

Matthew 5:8 (ESV Strong's)

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Those that see God want to purify themselves because seeing God is to realize how filthy we are.  It would be expected that John was at The Sermon on the Mount when Jesus said these words.  Here is his response:

1 John 3:2-3 (ESV Strong's)

Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

Seeing God should cause us to want to be suddenly pure.  

Tag: Bad Company Corrupts - Proverbs 4

Proverbs 4:14-17 (ESV Strong's)

Do not enter the path of the wicked,

and do not walk in the way of the evil.

Avoid it; do not go on it;

turn away from it and pass on.

For they cannot sleep unless they have done wrong;

they are robbed of sleep unless they have made someone stumble.

For they eat the bread of wickedness

and drink the wine of violence.

Tag:  Bad Company Corrupts

All throughout Scripture we have command after command to avoid the company of those who reject God and His Word and His Ways.   Note the first Psalm:

Psalms 1:1 (ESV Strong's)

Blessed is the man

who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

nor stands in the way of sinners,

nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

God wants us to live separate from the world, even though we live in the world every day.   We are to be different and to stand out to the world as a unique follower of Christ.    In the above proverbs we see Solomon’s wisdom about separation.    Solomon is telling us that a reason to stay away from the evil influences of the world is because of their corrupt intent.   The world not only is violent to each other, Solomon tells us that the world can’t even sleep unless they have plotted to do some wrong, contrary to the character and Word of God.   Our companionship with them will cause us to think like them and act like them.  We are to ask for Godly wisdom and to rejoice in the wisdom God gives us to keep us separate and honoring of Him.  

Tag: From Old Age to Youth - Psalms 69-71

Psalms 71:17-18 (ESV Strong's)

O God, from my youth you have taught me,

and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds.

So even to old age and gray hairs,

O God, do not forsake me,

until I proclaim your might to another generation,

your power to all those to come.

Tag;  From Old Age to Youth

The role and responsibility of those who have grown old is to teach the truths of God’s word.   In old age we are not to look for retirement and ease.  We are to find a way to teach the youth the knowledge of God. When the old aged does not teach God’s Character and God’s promises and plans, there is a void and a gap created that should not be there.   The aged are not supposed to step away from this one responsibility.  They might be able to step away from a “job,” but they can’t and should not step away from teaching the younger generation about the power and promises about God.   Notice Caleb’s approach for old age:

Joshua 14:11 (ESV Strong's)

I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming.

Tag: God Grants Wisdom - 1 Kings 10-13

1 Kings 10:3 (ESV Strong's)

And Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from the king that he could not explain to her.

Tag: God Provides Wisdom

Solomon had asked for wisdom from God and God granted wisdom to him.  That is a sure and true promise from God:

James 1:5-6 (ESV Strong's)

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.

Proverbs 8:1-6 (ESV Strong's)

Does not wisdom call?

Does not understanding raise her voice?

On the heights beside the way,

at the crossroads she takes her stand;

beside the gates in front of the town,

at the entrance of the portals she cries aloud:

“To you, O men, I call,

and my cry is to the children of man.

O simple ones, learn prudence;

O fools, learn sense.

Hear, for I will speak noble things,

and from my lips will come what is right,

Proverbs 9:10 (ESV Strong's)

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,

and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.

God provides wisdom to all who want it.  They must fear the Lord, since that is the beginning of wisdom.   But, if we cry for it and ask God for it, we will receive it. Wisdom is not that knowledge that comes from being alive a long time.  Godly wisdom is insight about human nature and our life on earth and about the knowledge of God that ONLY God can provide.   Leaders needs wisdom and wisdom is provided by God to those who come to Him in faith.  This is what Solomon did in his early life.  God granted him wisdom and he, in turn, blessed those around him.  

Tag: Have Your “Hands” in the Offering - Leviticus 1-3

Leviticus 3:1-2 (ESV Strong's)

“If his offering is a sacrifice of peace offering, if he offers an animal from the herd, male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before the Lord. And he shall lay his hand on the head of his offering and kill it at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and Aaron's sons the priests shall throw the blood against the sides of the altar.

Tag:  Have Your “Hands” in the Offering

In the book of Leviticus we can get lost in all the sacrificial requirements and instructions.  We can get so wrapped up in the blood on the alter, the type of offering and the procedure of the offering that we completely miss the meaning and purpose.  In the above passage we are given the initial instructions about the “peace” offering.   The “peace” offering is not an offering to atone for a particular sin in your life. It is often referred to as the “fellowship” offering.   This is a worship sacrifice wanting to have full fellowship with the living God.   The worshipper, in this case, places his hands on the head of the animal about to be sacrificed.   This is done to demonstrate the worshippers involvement in that act of worship.   He is to identify with the sacrifice and allow the animal to take his place in the act of fellowship with God.   Of course, today, we know that Jesus is our fellowship offering.  We are, today, however, place our “hands” onto Christ’s offering.   What does that look like in this time and age?   Note what Paul told the Romans:

Romans 12:1 (ESV Strong's)

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

We are to be “living” sacrifices and identify each of our members as members of righteousness that Christ provides through the work of the Spirit.   We are to yield not just our hands, but our entire selves to Christ’s control.  In the OT the worshipper brought the sacrifice to want to fellowship with God and could only touch the animal being sacrificed.  WE have the opportunity to fully give our entire being to Christ to have His communion with us.   

Tag: In the Spirit Equates to Walking with the Spirit - Galatians 4-6

Galatians 5:25-26 (ESV Strong's)

If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

Tag:  In the Spirit Equates to Walking With the Spirit

Paul has gone to great lengths to show the contrast between a walk in the flesh and a walk in the Spirit.   He is writing to a group of believers who are being persuaded by false teachers to return to trying to complete their righteous living by doing works of the flesh.   Paul wants them to know that the things that please God can only be accomplished by walking by faith in the Spirit.   Just prior to the imperative in the above verse Paul wrote to these believers and outlined the “fruit of the Spirit.”   Having outlined what the Spirit does in our lives, Paul now simply tells us that if we live by the Spirit (and we do), then we are “keep in step with the Spirit.”   There are two ‘let us” statements:  

1. Let us - keep in step with the Spirit.  This is the positive and tells us that the fruit of the Spirit will be produced in our lives as we live in faith.  We are to “let” that happen.  

2. Let us - not become conceited, provoking or envious.   This is the summary of the works of the flesh Paul just outlined, earlier in this chapter.   These three characteristics are the things that are opposed to the list of the fruit of the Spirit.  

We have an obligation, by faith, to let the Spirit work in our lives and to not continue to walk in the flesh ... which is what these hearers were doing, or about to do.   We are to walk and live by faith, by the Spirit of God in our lives.  We are to allow the Spirit to override the flesh.   When we do that we will be in step with the Spirit.   

Tag: Watching the World of Others - Luke 9-10

Luke 9:49 (ESV Strong's)

Anyone Not Against Us Is For Us

John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.”

Tag:  Watching The World of Others

We are all “other watchers.”   We like to watch people, watch their lives and gaze into their matters.  The disciples were not exempt from this type of worldly behavior.  The problem with this story is taht we don’t know their motive.   We don’t know if this was done out of loyalty or envy or what the reason might have been.  We only know they brought the matter to Jesus.  That should indicate they were not envious.   However, note what happened a few moments earlier:

Luke 9:37-40 (ESV Strong's)

On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. And behold, a man from the crowd cried out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out. It convulses him so that he foams at the mouth, and shatters him, and will hardly leave him. And I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.”

Earlier, these same disciples were not successful of doing the very thing these observed “disciples” were doing.   It would be hard for them, in human nature, to not be envious of what they saw these other disciples doing.   It could have been motivated by loyalty or fidelity, but, probably envy.    That has not changed much in the centuries since this scene took place.  Believers and church leaders watch and observe other church leaders and, motivated by “loyalty” or “fidelity” or “envy,” they react in similar fashion.   It is often, regretfully, envy that motivates.   This is especially true when we see other “ministries” able to accomplish something we can’t. Jesus gives these disciples and us a valuable principle to follow and truth to live by.   If someone is not fighting against us in faith, they are with us.  Our envy and jealousy needs to be in check with that overriding truth.   We ought not compare ourselves with others.  It is not wise.  

2 Corinthians 10:12 (ESV Strong's)

Not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who are commending themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding.

But, if we do, Jesus’ gives us wisdom of when not to do it.